Fair Value Measurement: Questions and Answers
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Fair value measurement Questions and answers US GAAP and IFRS ¥ £ € $ December 2017 kpmg.com Contents Contents Comparability is the challenge 1 About the standards 2 About this publication 4 A. An introduction to fair value measurement 6 B. Scope 8 C. The item being measured and the unit of account 18 D. Market participants 29 E. Principal and most advantageous markets 32 F. Valuation approaches and techniques 40 G. Inputs to valuation techniques 50 H. Fair value hierarchy 61 I. Fair value at initial recognition 70 J. Highest and best use 75 K. Liabilities and own equity instruments 79 L. Portfolio measurement exception 88 M. Inactive markets 95 N. Disclosures 99 O. Application issues: Derivatives and hedging 113 P. Application issues: Investments in investment funds 134 Q. Application issues: Practical expedient for investments in investment companies 139 Appendix: Index of questions and answers 147 Appendix: Effective dates – US GAAP 155 Acknowledgments 157 Keeping in touch 158 Comparability is the challenge The use of fair value measurement for financial reporting continues on an upward trajectory and presents significant challenges, requiring judgment and interpretation. Fair value measurement is not a static discipline and markets are demonstrating increasing interconnectedness and are inherently unstable. Further, the regulatory frameworks continue to change. This means that new valuation methodologies are being created and refined as they are adopted by market participants. And as the fair value standards dictate, it is the market participant view that shapes fair value. As a result, preparers of financial statements cannot be complacent about the methodologies they use to measure fair value. Management needs to monitor developments in valuation techniques to ensure that its valuation models appropriately reflect the types of inputs that market participants would consider. But monitoring alone isn’t sufficient. Regulators frequently question preparers about many areas of fair value measurement, including the appropriateness of the assumptions used and disclosures. The European regulator, ESMA,1 issued a report in July 20172 as part of the IASB’s implementation review that discussed the application of IFRS 13, Fair Value Measurement. It found that the IFRS 13 requirements were well incorporated into the financial statements of the sampled issuers, but identified areas of improvement when applying IFRS 13. For example, the report called for more clarity in the standard in areas where there is uncertainty in practice. In addition, the report called for improvement in the level of compliance and comparability in applying IFRS 13. Although the fair value accounting principles under US GAAP and IFRS are largely converged, achieving global comparability in measuring fair value is a continuous challenge in an ever-changing world. We are pleased to help you navigate the complexity by providing our current guidance in this third edition of Questions and Answers. Kimber Bascom and Mahesh Narayanasami Sylvie Leger and Chris Spall Department of Professional Practice KPMG International KPMG LLP Standards Group 1. European Securities and Markets Authority. 2. Review of Fair Value Measurement in the IFRS financial statements. © 2017 KPMG LLP, a Delaware limited liability partnership and the U.S. member firm of the KPMG network of independent member firms affiliated with KPMG International Cooperative, a Swiss entity. All rights reserved. © 2017 KPMG IFRG Limited, a UK company, limited by guarantee. All rights reserved. 2 | Fair value measurement: Questions and answers About the standards Chronology and objective FASB ASC Topic 820, Fair Value Measurement, was originally issued in September 2006 as FASB Statement No. 157. The IFRS equivalent, IFRS 13, was issued in May 2011. At the same time, the FASB issued ASU 2011-04, Amendments to Achieve Common Fair Value Measurement and Disclosure Requirements in US GAAP and IFRSs. The ASU amended US GAAP to achieve the Boards’ objectives of a converged definition of fair value and substantially converged measurement and disclosure guidance. Topic 820 and IFRS 13 define fair value, establish a framework for measuring fair value and a fair value hierarchy based on the source of the inputs used to estimate fair value, and require disclosures about fair value measurements. The standards do not establish new requirements for when fair value is required or permitted, but provide a single source of guidance on how fair value is measured. In general, this guidance is applied when fair value is required or permitted by other applicable GAAP. Since our last edition of Questions and Answers, a disclosure simplification for investments measured using the net asset value per share practical expedient (or its equivalent) has become effective for public and nonpublic companies applying US GAAP (see section Q). The FASB also issued codification improvements that (1) amend the definition of readily determinable fair value (see Question Q15) and (2) clarify the difference between a valuation technique and a valuation approach (distinctions clarified throughout). Additionally, public and nonpublic companies may early adopt accounting standards that affect the guidance in Topic 820, which are highlighted as forthcoming requirements throughout (discussed in About this publication). Summary of differences Throughout this publication, we highlight what we believe are significant differences between US GAAP and IFRS between US GAAP and IFRS. However, many of these differences do not arise from the fair value measurement standards themselves, but because of the interaction of those standards with other US GAAP or IFRS requirements. For example, Question C90 discusses a key difference in respect of the unit of account; and Question I20 discusses day one gains or losses on the initial recognition of financial instruments. © 2017 KPMG LLP, a Delaware limited liability partnership and the U.S. member firm of the KPMG network of independent member firms affiliated with KPMG International Cooperative, a Swiss entity. All rights reserved. © 2017 KPMG IFRG Limited, a UK company, limited by guarantee. All rights reserved. Fair value measurement: Questions and answers | 3 About the standards | The following summarizes what we believe are the few significant differences between US GAAP and IFRS caused by the fair value measurement standards. US GAAP IFRS Disclosures (section N) Nonpublic entities are exempt from Unlike US GAAP, there are no some requirements. In addition, certain exemptions for nonpublic entities. qualifying nonpublic entities have additional exemptions for financial instruments. There is no requirement to disclose Unlike US GAAP, quantitative sensitivity quantitative sensitivity information information about Level 3 recurring about Level 3 recurring measurements measurements of financial instruments of financial instruments. is required. Practical expedient for investments in investment companies (section Q) There is a practical expedient to measure Unlike US GAAP, there is no practical the fair value of these investments at net expedient for these investments. asset value if certain criteria are met. © 2017 KPMG LLP, a Delaware limited liability partnership and the U.S. member firm of the KPMG network of independent member firms affiliated with KPMG International Cooperative, a Swiss entity. All rights reserved. © 2017 KPMG IFRG Limited, a UK company, limited by guarantee. All rights reserved. 4 | Fair value measurement: Questions and answers About this publication Purpose The purpose of this publication is to assist you in understanding the requirements of, and the differences between, Topic 820, Fair Value Measurement, and IFRS 13, Fair Value Measurement. Organization of the The questions and answers are numbered in steps of 10 so that future questions questions and answers and answers can be added without breaking the flow of the commentary on fair value measurement. The questions and answers that have been added, deleted or substantially expanded in this edition are highlighted in the Appendix: Index of questions and answers. Organization of the text Each section of this publication includes a short overview, followed by questions and answers. Our commentary is referenced to the FASB ASC (or Codification) and to current IFRS literature, where applicable. References to the relevant literature are included in the left-hand margin, with the IFRS references in square brackets below the US GAAP references. For example, 820‑10‑35‑9 is paragraph 35-9 of Subtopic 820-10; and IFRS 13.22 is paragraph 22 of IFRS 13. The main text is written in the context of US GAAP. To the extent that the requirements of IFRS are the same, the references in the left-hand margin include both US GAAP and IFRS. However, if the requirements of IFRS are different from US GAAP, or a different wording might result in different interpretations in practice, a box at the end of that question and answer discusses the requirements of IFRS and how they differ from US GAAP. Effective dates New standards and interpretations issued by the IASB have a single effective date. In contrast, those issued by the FASB usually have at least two effective dates: one for public business entities, and one for other entities. This may be further nuanced by including certain other entities (e.g. employee benefit plans that file their financial statements with the SEC) with public business entities, and in some cases the effective date for public business entities